The New War
by MilitaryBarbie
Summary: The Battle of Beacon is over, leaving the Hunters-in-training on their own. Who will they follow, and what path will they take to fight the new evil in Remnant?
1. The Aftermath

**The Aftermath**

 **Just me! For those of you who don't know me I write a few other RWBY fanfictions. After I was done crying my eyes out after the season premier I decided to start a new one! So here it is!**

The school was in ruins. Weiss had never felt like this before. So…empty. Like no amount of things mattered now that Beacon was gone. Winter had left. Her Father had tried and make her leave too but she had outright refused. She wouldn't abandon her friends now. She picked her way around the heaps of broken stone to the air pad were the last few ships were leaving. Sun was holding up an unconscious Yang as everyone else limped through the metal doors. Jaune was still in the city.

Everyone was numb.

Loosing Penny was the first blow.

Seeing Yang…..

Many Hunters were missing. This had been a loss of epic proportions.

The Dust ship made a stop in the safe zone of Vale. Jaune met them there. He didn't even speak. Everyone was numb.

Ruby and Pyrrha were missing. After the flash of light on top of the tower everyone was told to evacuate. They weren't sure what had happened. They huddled with the other Hunters to wait for the news. Nearly an hour of waiting in the dusty air and Qrow appeared as if out of thin air, holding Ruby. She looked fine but she was as unconscious as her sister. He didn't speak either. A word with the pilot of one of the planes and he returned to the huddled group.

"I'm taking Yang and Ruby home, Taiyang will want them back after…this."

"Let me come." Weiss jumped out. "I want to help I want to do- something."

"Shouldn't you be with your family?"

"They left. I told them I wanted to help my friends so, they left me."

She saw his eyes regard her with a kind of respect before nodding. "Alright, you can come. I'll need the help anyways." He turned to the rest of the group. "Will you all be okay?"

They all nodded mutely, except for Jaune. After making Ren and Nora promise to watch after him, they headed out. Weiss handled Ruby because she was smaller and uninjured. She laid her on the bottom of the plane and held her head in her lap. Qrow pulled out bandages from the first aid kit and starting wrapping up Yang's severed arm.

Weiss hated to look at it. It was so unlike the Yang she was used to seeing. It was a reminder that they had failed.

She dozed off somewhere on the ride over, leaned against the closed door of the plane. Qrow shook her shoulder gently. "We're close, help me get Ruby."

After Qrow carefully placed the small Huntress in Weiss's arms, he took up Yang in his own. After they landed, they walked up to a beautiful house that stood in the woods. A man with blonde hair stood at the door, looking like he had the weight of the world on him.

He hurriedly rushed them in and showed them to the girls' rooms. Weiss changed Ruby into some comfortable pajamas while the men were dealing with Yang, nestling her in her bed. She had no idea what had happened on that tower, but she knew it was a miracle Ruby was laying here.

"I'm glad you're okay, Ruby." She smiled and smoothed down the covers over her friend. She walked over to the other bed in the room and sat down, slipping out of her shoes.

Qrow and Taiyang walked in a little while later. They checked on Ruby and asked if anything had happened. Weiss shook her head.

Ruby's Dad gave a strained smile. "I'm Ruby's Father, Taiyang. I've heard much about you, Weiss. I'm sorry we had to meet like this." He gave a pause and tried to collect himself. "I am- thank you for watching over her."

"She's my partner." Weiss said simply.

"There's a room down the hall if you want your privacy."

"No thank you, I'll stay in here with her if it's okay. Just for tonight."

"Of course. I'm in the room downstairs if you need anything. You are welcome to borrow some of Ruby's clothes if you need some. I know she won't mind."

"I can message my sister; she should send my stuff over. Whatever wasn't at Beacon…" she trailed off.

Taiyang smiled apologetically. "No rush, you're more than welcome to stay as long as you need."

"Thank you."

He nodded and walked out of the room, leaving Qrow behind.

"Ruby might be a little confused when she wakes up. It's important we don't overload her with what happened. We don't know what she will remember."

"Was she on the tower? With Pyrrha?"

Qrow looked at the ground. "Yeah, yeah she was. But Pyrrha….she didn't make it Weiss. Cinder was just too strong."

Weiss felt a hole burn into her chest. For the first time in a long time tears stung her eyes. But she remembered herself at the last second. She sat up straight and pressed her hands in her lap. She couldn't speak but just nodded her head.

"I'll leave you alone now. If you need anything, or if she wakes up, you call us."

She nodded again as he left, shutting the door. She changed into some pajamas of Ruby's. She sent an emotionless email to her sister asking for her to send her clothes and to keep her discretion as to her location. She lay her scroll on the bed next to her and laid down. Only then did the tears begin to flow.

She hadn't slept that long in a while. It was almost midday before she drudged out of bed and put on some jeans of Ruby's and a clean tee shirt. Taiyang offered to make her food but she wasn't hungry. She sat in the living room staring out the window for a while. She returned to Ruby's room and sat next to the bed. She was still asleep. Night fell and Taiyang walked in, offering dinner. Weiss politely declined. She didn't want to leave Ruby now. She had begun to doze off when the door opened again. Qrow walked in carrying a bowl.

"Eat this." He whispered.

"I'm not hungry." She shook her head.

"I know, but you're going to eat it anyway." He shoved the bowl in her hands, almost spilling the soup inside. "You're a Schnee, you'll starve yourself before you'd admit you're not okay."

"I'm fine." She said hotly.

"Mhm." He looked over at his niece. "It's so hard to see them like this. They look so innocent and so…"

"Broken." Weiss finished. She didn't eat but she held the bowl close to her for warmth.

He nodded and stood there in silence for a while. He jerked as if coming out of a trance and his eyes darted to her. "Eat. You're no good to Ruby if you pass out too."

She huffed but when he left she dared a few bites. She found she was hungrier than she had thought and finished the bowl. She was sure it was delicious but it felt like sandpaper on her throat. Here she was all curled up eating a bowl of soup when Pyrrha was-

She ran into the bathroom and immediately threw up all she had just eaten. It burned coming up. Tears mixed in with the bile as she emptied her stomach. She flushed and cleaned up her face before returning to Ruby's room. She laid down, facing Ruby's sleeping form. She just needed to sit a little before she went and did something else. Anything else. She had never been so bored in her life but she couldn't find the will to do anything.

He waited until she was asleep before returning. He took the empty bowl and pulled the covers over her. "We'll try again tomorrow." He sighed before leaving the two girls in peace.

The next day was exactly like the day before, and the four days following. Weiss wouldn't leave Ruby's side for any reason, and she couldn't hold down any food. Taiyang began to worry about her as well as his daughters. Her things had arrived after a few days of her staying but even having her possessions didn't cheer her up. Her weapon lie on the corner, still dusty and scratched from the battle. She laid around in the same nightgown.

Every time someone came in she would sit up straight and respond to their questions, but it didn't fool them. Qrow knew how a Schnee could be. She was suffering. Her face got a hollow look after a few days without food. The shadows under her eyes grew dark as the night. Taiyang wanted to take her to a doctor or return her to her family but Qrow rejected.

"You think that will help her? Removing her from Ruby's side will only make it worse. She's suffering, she just needs time."

"Her family will miss her, Qrow. We can't keep her here. I don't want to make enemies with the Schnees."

"Trust me, they won't come looking for her." He took a swig out of his flask. "Just give her some more time. I'm sure we'll get her to eat soon."

Taiyang took a deep breath. "What about Yang?"

"Same thing. Give her time."

Taiyang gave a sigh of epic proportions but nodded and returned to his study.

Weiss hadn't meant to. She had needed to go to the bathroom and had seen the light under the door. She knew it was Yang's. She was the only other bedroom on the second floor. She quietly turned the knob and looked inside. Yang was awake, sitting up in her bed. Weiss meant to leave but Yang turned her head and their eyes met.

"Dad told me you were here."

"I couldn't leave you guys."

"Blake left." She spat out. "Sun watched her go. When you guys landed in Vale, she just left."

"We all went through a lot, Yang. She's probably just scared."

"I was there for her when she ran herself into the ground about Torchwick." She growled angrily. "And now that I need her-" her voice broke and she closed her eyes.

"Well I'm here, and she'll come around." Weiss moved to sit on the end of Yang's bed.

"Dad told me about Pyrrha." Yang looked like she was on the verge of tears.

Weiss nodded. "She's, she's gone."

They sat in silence while tears fell silently down Yang's cheeks. Weiss was too good a friend to let her suffer alone. She scooted up on the bed and hugged Yang. Yang broke in Weiss's arms. Her tears flowed freely and she began to sob.

"It all went to hell so fast." She sobbed.

"It's over now." Weiss replied with a hollow voice.

"If I had gone. If I had gone up there I could have saved her. I could have saved Penny. I could have done _something._ "

"Yang, we can't change the past." Weiss whispered. "What's done is done."

"We are supposed to be heroes!" Yang looked up with red eyes. "And we were helpless. We couldn't do a damn thing."

"We took out a lot of Grimm, we saved thousands of civilians. It wasn't for nothing Yang." She gulped before continuing. "Pyrrha didn't die for nothing."

"It sure seems like it!"

"How could you say that?" Weiss gasped, leaning away. "She was our friend!"

"And what did that get her? She's dead now! Just like Penny! Probably like everyone else that night that we will never know. Because weren't good enough, they died! Because I wasn't good enough." She looked down at her dilapidated arm in disgust. "And I'll never be any good anymore."

"That's not true. You're an amazing Huntress. Just because you got injured doesn't mean you aren't talented."

"I didn't sprain an ankle, Weiss, I _lost my arm_. That isn't something you recover from."

"There are great prosthetics, Yang. You've seen Hunters who have lost things and replaced them with whatever they want."

"It won't be the same." She almost whispered, looking down.

"Of course it won't be the same." Weiss snapped. "Nothing will ever be the same. Everyone lost things that night, Yang. We have to move on."

"And you're moving on? Qrow told me you haven't even been able to eat. You just stare out the window all day like a bump on a log."

"That's beside the point." She huffed. "We can't keep wallowing in the yesterdays."

"You tell me that when you see what happened that night." Her red eyes stung through Weiss now. "You tell me that when you go to protect a friend and she abandons you. You tell me that when you thought your sister was dead because you couldn't do a damn thing about it. You tell me to move on when we figure out what the hell happened that night. Penny is gone, so is Pyrrha. She was the best of us. If she was taken out like that, how long do you think I would last?"

The silence was too heavy. After a few seconds Yang nodded and slid down, pulling the covers over her chin. Weiss sighed before leaving, shutting off the light in hopes Yang would get some sleep. She knew very well neither of them would that night.

The screams. Those horrible screams. The Grimm's scent filling her nose. The dragon circling the tower. Then the bright light, blinding.

She woke up with a jolt, an exclamation of fear stuck in her throat. She was sitting in the living room laying in a chair. Qrow was holding a steaming mug out to her.

"Drink."

She deftly took the mug and sniffed it. It had almost touched her lips before she asked. "Is there alcohol in this?!"

Qrow chuckled. "No. Maybe next time if you're good. You like tea, right?"

"Yeah." She said slowly, blowing to cool the tea down.

"So does your sister."

"How do you know so much about my sister?"

"Me and her go way back. Among other things, she is Ironwood's right hand. Me being so close to Ozpin crossed our paths more than a few times."

"You guys never..?"

"She wishes." he laughed.

"Gross." Weiss mumbled before taking a slow sip. It burned going down but it wasn't unpleasant.

"If you can hold that down maybe we can try some food."

She nodded sadly, staring into the amber liquid. "Is that why you drink so much?"

His eyes regarded her for a second before he nodded. "You saw one battle, lost a couple friends. I've seen hundreds, and lost too many to count."

Weiss was quiet, seeing his eyes slide into remembrance. It took a few seconds for him to come back again.

"I heard your talk with Yang last night."

She blushed. "I didn't mean to be so harsh."

"Yang is going through a lot. She just needs time. But you didn't say anything she doesn't need to hear." He glanced around. "Don't tell Tai though. He would flip if he heard."

"Why?"

"He doesn't like anyone giving his daughter's a rough time."

"I wasn't being mean I just-"

He held up his hand. "I know. I'm just warning you. You're growing on him. Trust me, you don't want to get on his bad side."

"I'll keep it in mind." She gave a pitiful attempt at a smile before returning to the mug.

"Just try not to be so hard on Ruby."

She nodded and swallowed, loving the sear she felt as it slid down her throat. "I know. I just hope she's okay."

"She's a lot tougher than you'd think." He smiled before taking a swig from his flask. "It's nice to see you around."

"I figured I should get out of Ruby's room for a while."

"It's good for you. When you feel up to it we should probably try and take Yang out. All she does is stare out the window and feel sorry for herself."

"That's an awful thing to say!" Weiss gasped

He held up his hands. "I'm not saying she's wrong. But she needs to move on. We need to figure out what that night was all about. We can't be sitting here like we are, wallowing in our self-pity. We have to make sure those lives given mean something. We need to take some action."

"We aren't ready for that." She felt weird talking to an adult like this, but it was hard seeing Qrow as an adult when he was drinking from his flask like it was a bottle. "Ruby's still out, it will be a while before Yang can fight again."

"And you?"

"Me?"

"You're not hurt. You're not sleeping. You're perfectly fine."

"I have to be here for Ruby."

"Do you? Or is Ruby here for you?"

"What are you implying?"

"I'm saying you're scared to get back out there. You're hiding out here because you know once you go back out there you'll have to cope with what happened."

"How dare you!"

He gave a mean chuckle. "You Schnees are all the same. You need to wake up, Princess. Just because you don't want to get out there doesn't mean people don't need you."

With furrowed eyebrows she slammed the mug on the coffee table. "I don't see you doing anything either."

"Because you've been in Ruby's room." He quipped back. "I've been very busy, trying to fill Ozpin's shoes."

"Making tea for students?"

"You're not a student, not anymore." He leaned closer to her. "Your headmaster is gone; your school is destroyed. You're nothing but half a Huntress with a bad attitude."

"I am not!" she stomped her bare foot and crossed her arms.

"Prove it."

"I will!"

She dashed up the stairs and grabbed Myrtenaster, charging through the house with it. Qrow was waiting for her on the front lawn, sipping from his flask. She held Myrtenaster out in a challenge. He lazily took out his own weapon and held it at his side. Fueled by anger, she dashed forward, delivering a quick series of swipes which he all deflected easily. She spun and launched at him from above but he stepped sideways and she slammed into the ground.

She rolled and tried to swipe his legs but he jumped, moving away from her. This continued for nearly two hours. He never even swung his weapon. Her last move was to activate Myrtenaster's dust compartments but something jammed it and threw her off balance. Qrow shoved her and her own momentum propelled her into the ground into a painful ten-foot slide through dirt and tree roots. He took another swig before sauntering over.

"You done yet?"

"You wish!" she tried to get up but he stepped on Myrtenaster's blade, pinning her down.

"Don't bother. Just a week out of practice and you're pathetic. Your weapon isn't even ready. What if a horde of Grimm came charging through right now?"

"I'd fight them."

"And how long until they ate you?"

She huffed and he laughed.

"The way I see it, you got two options here. You can either go home to Daddy and beg his forgiveness, or you get back in shape and start doing some real work."

"I was doing real work!"

"What, at school? Those tests and quizzes? Those are nothing. You know your Grimm, that's all you need. The real school is out there." He pointed to the distant forest. "Out there is where the real lessons are. The ones about survival and speed. Where is you aren't fast enough, you're dead. Where you aren't skilled enough, you cause others to die."

She picked herself up, clutching her rapier in her hand so hard her knuckles showed white. "I'm not ready for that. We didn't eve graduate."

"You think you need a piece of paper to kill Grimm? You think the bad guys are going to spare you because you haven't graduated yet? Did Cinder spare Pyrrha because she was only a first year?"

Tears pricked her eyes at the name. "No."

"Exactly. If you don't start learning the real lessons now, you will all join her soon enough." He turned away and headed back into the house.

She looked down at her dirty nightgown, biting her lip.

"Qrow?"

He didn't say anything, but stopped to take a swig.

"Pyrrha was the best of us. She was ten times better than me. And she…..If that happened to her, what chance do I have?"

"I see your little talk with Yang had some effect." He screwed the lid back on and tucked the silver canister in his coat. "All I can say is sometimes even the best of us fail. Sometimes the bad guys win and the good guys get killed. All you can do is try your best, and when the time comes; hope your death means something."


	2. The Rally

**Hi guys! Here's another one! Hope you like. Please review if you get the time, they really do make a difference!**

The Rally

She sat down and looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair was disheveled after her tussle with Qrow, and her nightgown was dirty. She noticed her sagging eyes in horror. How had she not noticed this? She spent the rest of the morning cleaning herself and her weapon. She apologized to it for letting it be treated so badly. She hoped he understood. She cleaned out the chambers and polished the blade, working off that horrible night. Next was herself. She brushed her hair and put it in its ponytail, also putting on her combat outfit. It felt odd to be back in her war uniform. She slipped on her boots and headed outside.

She walked a little ways from the house into a quiet little glade. She drew her weapon and loaded one of the cartridges with ice dust. She squared off with a tree and rushed it, slashing divots into the wood. She activated a glyph and stepped up, cutting at a low branch. Flipping away, she twirled her cartridges until the ice was active. She took her usual stance…and chickened out. All of a sudden she was back in the choking air of Beacon. The sirens were going off, Velvet was fighting for her life, and her body was physically exhausted. She screamed and fear and fell to her knees. A glyph activated, a huge sword appearing. It sliced the tree in half before disappearing. She curled up into a ball on the forest floor. No one could see her, no one was here,; she was safe.

Myrtenaster lay gleaming on the grass in front of her. She reached out and grabbed him. She couldn't let this get the best of her. She stood up and picked a new tree. She dashed and sliced, pirouetted and parried. Every time she felt the choking of the Beacon air, she pushed it down and changed pace. She tried to summon the knight's sword again but she couldn't seem to do it. As the sun started to set she sheathed her sword and headed back to the house. She was starving for the first time in days and sat for dinner with Taiyang and Qrow. They didn't ask where she had been all day, but something in their faces told her they didn't need to. They knew she was back.

After changing into her nightgown, she sat on Ruby's bed again. She looked as peaceful as ever, but she still hadn't woken up.

"Hi Ruby." Weiss whispered. She felt really foolish but she needed to talk to someone. After their falling out, she knew she couldn't go to Yang, and the two men were out of the question. So her sleeping partner had to do. "I went out to practice today. Your Uncle made a fool of me. I was so embarrassed. But I went out on my own after that and I didn't do too bad. I Summoned again, but not for very long. I cut a tree in half but hopefully that's okay." She took the sleeping girl's hand. "I really miss you, Ruby. Please wake up soon."

She sighed and walked over to her own bed. She hadn't found the strength to take the spare room Taiyang had offered her. She didn't want to leave Ruby. She slid under the covers and turned off the lamp, falling asleep before she hit he pillow.

The next day she was up at her usual dawn hour and got dressed quickly. She wanted to Summon again, even if she had to be out there all day. She left the house early, before even the coffee had been put on, and headed into the glade again. She sliced the fallen tree with some Dust and rolled the discs of wood around the clearing, making make shift targets. She situated herself in the middle and readied herself. Head up, shoulders back, right foot forward, and go!

She shot fourteen ice shards in rapid succession, hitting ten of her targets. The four rogue projectiles flew into the forest and she winced as they hit stray trees. Only one of her hits was a bullseye. She was out of practice.

She repeated this exercise three more times before switching to hand-to-hand combat. She laid out a series of glyphs and darted around the circle, slashing each target. She did much better on these, but her little rapier wasn't very effective against the thick wood. She was too scared to use fire on the forest but she did practice with time dilation for a little while. After she was warmed up she sat down and meditated. She remembered the feeling of the Summoning. It was like her usual glyphs but it lasted longer and felt like an extension of herself. It took a lot of energy but it was a rush. She focused as hard as she could and a white glyph lit of in front of her. A white arm extended out of it, sword in hand. She even summoned a little of his chest plate but not as far as she would have liked.

She had it swing it's arm and it knocked over a few of the targets that were close. As the sweat beaded her forehead the white arm sank back into the glyph and it disappeared. She let out a whoosh of air. Her shoulders didn't slump but she did sag against her elbows for a moment. It had taken a lot of energy. She had no idea how she had summoned it during the Battle. She had been so tired.

To cool down she did some more exercises with the targets. She worked with a few more glyphs before calling it a day and heading back. She saw Qrow in the front yard, sitting on a swing that was tied to the branch of a tall tree in front of the house. He looked contemplative. She debated going over but decided he needed his space. She went inside and cleaned off her sword before placing it in the corner again and heading to get a before dinner snack. Taiyang was in the kitchen cooking and listening to music. He nodded in greeting at her but didn't try and start a conversation.

She went into the living room and opened her Scroll. Her sister had written her a message and a few of the Hunters from Beacon as well. She tried to find the words to tell them all that had happened but it was hard. Team JNPR, well what was left, knew what had happened. Ren reported Jaune was channeling his energy into his practicing. He was getting better at a rapid pace but he would have run himself into the ground if they had let him. They all knew he was grieving. They didn't know what had happened while Jaune and Pyrrha had been missing, or how they got separated, but after hearing the desperation in his voice when he had called her she knew something had happened. Something they went through had done something to Jaune.

She wrote them back and updated them on Ruby and Yang's condition. No one knew where Blake was, and all the students that had been in Vale for the tournament had all gone home. Neptune and Sun's team was gone. No one knew what had happened to Penny either. There were a lot of unanswered questions they had.

After responding to everyone Taiyang called dinner so she closed her Scroll and joined them.

"I might have to be heading out in a couple weeks. Some work of Ozpin's might need to be done sooner than I thought." Qrow told Taiyang

"The girls will miss you."

"I won't leave until after Ruby wakes up, after that I'll have to see."

Taiyang nodded and the conversation dipped again.

Weiss cleared her throat. "If you wouldn't mind and if you had the time, do you think we could spar whenever you're free tomorrow?"

"Of course. Have to leave my nieces with some kind of protection other than this old coot." Qrow chuckled.

"Let's not forget who can beat who." Taiyang smiled at the jest.

"Please, I could take you with one hand tied behind my back."

"What, are you going to throw your flask at me?"

Weiss giggled a little and Qrow raised his eyebrow at her. She blushed and looked into her plate.

"You win Taiyang, for now." He pointed his spoon at his brother-in-law "But only because I'm feeling nice."

"I'm sure you'll go back to normal any time now."

Weiss giggled again and Taiyang smiled at her.

'How are you liking it here, Weiss?"

"It's so peaceful. Quite the change from Atlas and Beacon, but it's nice."

"I like having my own space, and it was nice with the girls growing up." He looked out the window. "It's beautiful this time of year."

"I went out and practiced in a little glade in the woods to the west. I hope that's okay."

"Of course, unless the squirrels mind. Yang and Ruby used to go out there all the time. It's been so quiet around here lately, it's nice to have some company for a change."

"I'm sorry I imposed. I just couldn't leave everybody and when I told my Father I wouldn't come with him…well he didn't take it well." She cast her eyes down remembering his anger.

"Well, anyone who can take on Papa Schnee is alright in my book." Qrow smiled.

"I can't say I approve of what you did as a Father." Taiyang scowled at Qrow. "But I do appreciate you making sure my girls were safe as much as you could."

Weiss set down her fork, feeling nauseous. "It's not like that. If it wasn't for me-" Weiss cut off. She took a deep breath before continuing. "I helped Ruby get to the top of the tower. If I hadn't-"

"She would have found another way." Qrow cut in. "Ruby is as stubborn as they come. If you hadn't helped her, she might have gotten herself into more trouble trying to do it on her own. You can't blame yourself."

"But that's where that woman was. That's where Pyrrha was…it's where everything happened. I allowed Ruby to walk right into that."

"And because of it, that Grimm is frozen. I'm not happy what happened to Ruby but her actions are saving many lives from it." Qrow pushed his plate forward and leaned on the table. "We can't live in our regrets Weiss."

She nodded silently and Taiyang stepped in. "We aren't meaning to sound harsh. I for one am glad to have you here, and I know the girls appreciate it. It was just us three for a while."

Weiss smiled but didn't respond. Despite what they had said she couldn't help feeling a little like a burden, and she still felt guilty about helping Ruby. She shook off the feelings for the moment and helped clean up after dinner as best she could. She wasn't really accustomed to cooking or cleaning but she was trying to help out a little more. She read a book after dinner until she started yawning. She ran into Taiyang in the hallway, who was standing in Ruby's open door. She debated walking away but he turned and saw her.

"I guess I should let you get to bed."

"If you want some time alone with her that's fine."

"Nah, I was just checking on her." He looked back. "Yang and Ruby both mean a lot to me."

"Is that what you were thinking about on the swing this afternoon?"

He raised an eyebrow at her and she blushed.

"I couldn't help but notice you as I was coming back to the house."

"Partially, yes. I know this goes against what I told you, but I wish I had done more to help them. I might have been able to stop this." He pulled out his flask and took a swig. The alcohol stench around him was already pretty strong and Weiss knew he had had a rough day.

"According to what we've pieced together, there wasn't much that could be done. Yang and Blake were attacked by a White Fang member, and you know what happened to Ruby."

He nodded, leaning on the door frame. "Thanks for trying to help, by the way. But there isn't much that can be done that can make this grizzled soul feel anything anymore."

"Maybe you're not trying the right things." She nodded at the flask in his hand. She had never really liked alcohol to begin with, and she knew what it could do to a person when they used it like Qrow did.

"Only thing that works." He slid it back in his coat pocket.

She bit her sharp retort back and slid past him into the room. She grabbed her night clothes and went into the bathroom to change and get ready for bed. Qrow was still slumped against the door when she came back. She went to squeeze past again but he stopped her with his voice.

"Weiss, can I ask a question of you? It's a little personal."

"I suppose." She replied slowly. His slurred speech told her he had probably finished his flask while she had been gone.

"Are you and Ruby a thing"

She blushed to her toes. "Oh no! I mean she's my partner, but not like that!" she kicked herself mentally for her embarrassment. "No, Ruby and I were just on the same team."

"No need to get all flustered, Princess." He slid his eyes over to hers in an almost smolder. "It was just a question."

She huffed and tried to push past him but he didn't move. "Excuse me."

"You're excused." He smirked without moving.

She stomped her foot and crossed her arms. "May I please get by you?"

"All you had to do was ask." He chuckled and let her get by him. She put her battle outfit on the chair at the foot of the bed and sat down, laying her Scroll on the night stand.

Qrow only stood there for a few more seconds before closing the door on the two girls and going to refill his flask. He had a lot to think about.


	3. Call to Adventure

**Sorry this one took so long, there has been a lot going on. Hope you guys like this. Let me know by shooting a review!**

The Call to Adventure

The next morning was the usual routine for Weiss, except after lunch Qrow followed her to the clearing. He observed her targets and noticed the gauges in the wood.

"You've been working hard."

"I need to get better."

"For what?"

She stammered a little. "I'm not sure, I guess whatever comes my way. Once Ruby wakes up and we decide what to do, I want to be ready."

"Sounds reasonable." He straightened up and drew his weapon. "How do you want to start?"

"Just a spar I guess." She pulled out Myrtenaster.

He bowed deeply and smirked. "Ladies first."

She took her stance and let a beat pause before she charged. He sidestepped her advance easily but she anticipated it, and rounded on him quickly. He jumped out of reach with raised eyebrows.

"You have been working hard."

This time he didn't let her do all of the work. In sword form, he raised his weapon and slashed. She flipped to a safe distance before spinning her chamber to an ice Dust. She activated a circle of glyphs around him and tried to execute her normal slashing attack but he knocked her off rhythm after the first slash. She flew almost ten feet before she stopped herself and turned around. He was already halfway to her, positioned in a vicious stab. She threw up a barrier glyph and he hit it instead of her. As his sword was bounced off, she flashed out and aimed for his ribs. She actually landed one hit before she had to bend out of the way of his sword. She landed solidly on her feet, but when she looked up he was already in her face. His tackle knocked her back into a tree. She slammed into the wood and slid down in a heap. Her head was pounding but she jumped up and braced herself for his follow-up attack. But his sword tip was on the ground and he was in a relaxed stance.

"Take a break kid, catch your breath."

She nodded and bent over a little, panting.

"Well, all your practicing has paid off. You've gotten better."

"I was just out of practice." She stood and walked over to him.

"Can you Summon yet?"

She cast him a wary glance. "How do you know about that?"

"Your sister and I have had our tousles in the past."

"A little. I'm nowhere near her level though."

"Maybe we can work on that one day. I don't know much but I have some tips that might help you focus. We should focus on basic combat for a while though. You're good, but you're not good enough yet."

"There is never good enough." Weiss recited one of her childhood lessons. "Someone is always better than you."

"Not a bad saying, but that's not very optimistic."

"The world isn't very optimistic right now."

He chuckled and nodded, pulling out his flask and taking a small sip. "It probably won't be for a while. But there are always just enough people left hoping that we piece ourselves back together again."

"Like Ruby." Weiss rolled her eyes. "She is always looking on the bright side, always has a plan."

"They both can be like that at times. Yang not so much lately, but she is understandably a little out of spirits right now."

Weiss nodded, refilling Myrtenaster. "Are you ready to go again?"

"In a minute." He took another swig before putting it away. "You should try and focus on not casting so many glyphs at once. It makes your moves easy to anticipate if you lay them out all at once."

"It's really hard for me to think on the fly like that."

"But it also makes it easier to adapt to any changes, and you don't waste Aura on glyphs that you end up not using."

She pursed her lips. "It takes a lot of concentration."

He gestured around the glade. "All we have is time right now. Just start out with casting all but the last glyph. I'll stay in place this time so you can get used to it."

She nodded and closed her eyes to focus. She cast her usual glyph sequence all except the last one, but kept it's desired place in her mind. She had just launched off of her second to last one when Qrow pashed her a little off balance. Already primed in anticipation, her Aura cast the last glyph out of reflex, saving her from a fall and allowing her to deliver her last strike.

"You said you were going to stay in place!"

"And battles never go as planned. You should never trust what your opponent says." He smirked. "It worked though, didn't it?"

She huffed but didn't respond.

"That is what you should do all the time. Always be prepared for the next glyph. Just like you were ready and you caught yourself. Trust your Aura. Let's try again."

He moved around the glade this time, and she was only able to cast one glyph at a time to keep up with him. In a constant state of activity, her Aura weakened ten times as fast. After only thirty minutes of sparring she felt the drain and had to stop.

"Not bad for your first time." He smiled and sheathed his sword. "We should go back now; you need to rest. We can come out here again tomorrow. You need to work on it every day to build up your Aura's strength. It's a lot like a muscle, the more you use it, the faster it gets at responding and replenishing."

She nodded a little wearily and fell into step behind him for the walk back. It pulled out his flask again and took a deep draft.

"How do you fight drunk all the time?"

"It's an art." He smiled. "You learn to get used to it."

She had nothing to say to that and so they walked on in silence.

They were almost to the house when he spoke up again. "Do you think you could talk to Yang? Get her to come out here with us?"

She shook her head. "She never listens to me, and the last thing she wants to do right now is see Hunters in action."

"If she doesn't start soon, she may never start again. The longer she goes without it, the more her resentment will grow."

"She doesn't do anything she doesn't want to. She can be very head strong." The house came into view. "The only person she might listen to right now is Blake or Ruby, and both of those options are kind of unavailable right now."

He nodded, deep in thought. Weiss walked in first and headed directly to the shower. The hot water restored her strength but she remained a little weak. She hadn't been put through anything like that before. She ate like a starved cow at dinner and Taiyang smiled at her renewed spirits. They made small talk and then parted their separate ways after dinner as usual. Weiss got on her Scroll and replied to all her messages. More of the Beacon Hunters were starting to surface, but not all with good news. Some of the older students were trying to track down those that were missing in the hopes of finding them alive, or at least to find their bodies to bury. She couldn't focus on reading after such bad news and instead left the house again for the glade. She didn't bring her weapon this time, this wasn't for combat training. It was dusk, and the birds were singing in the trees. She stood in the middle of the clearing and listened to their tunes for a while. Then she opened her mouth to sing.

She didn't sing anything in particular. There weren't even words, it was just tunes. She responded to some of the birds and they sang back. She pushed out every emotion she had been feeling for the past weeks. Every lost friend, every gained ability, every tear, and every laugh came out in her song. Her voice traveled around the glade until she had expelled every feeling she could have ever felt. As her song died she heard all the birds go quiet too. Night had fallen, she had better go home. She stopped herself. Home? She hadn't realized she had come to think of this little island as a home, but it felt right to call it that. Her thoughts explored this as she walked back.

It was comfy, and she felt closer to Ruby than she did with Winter. While she loved them both, Winter had always felt more of another parent than a sibling. Ruby had always seemed so open and honest, not to say she wasn't annoying at times.

She was so focused on her thoughts, she noticed the lumbering footsteps a little late. It wasn't until a twig cracked about five feet behind her that she turned around. A Beowolf stood almost twice her size, eyes glowing in the darkness. She opened her mouth in fear, thinking of her trusty rapier standing dutifully in the corner of Ruby's room. She activated a rune and jumped away as it delivered the first swipe. It clipped her heel, sending her into a nose dive. She rolled head over heels twice before coming to a stop. Her ankle was bleeding through the slice in her boot. It growled and jumped for her, claws aimed for her head. She scrunched down, too scared to scream.

A flash of light, a yelp, and it was all over. The Beowolf's body was smoking at Qrow's feet. His weapon was in scythe form and stood silhouetted in the moonlight next to his dark figure. He collapsed his sword and put it away before turning to her. She was shaking a little but trying to keep it under control. He noticed her clutching her ankle and knelt down to assess it. He saw her boot and her hand were wet with blood and her face was twisted in pain a little. He cursed before picking her up in his arms. She protested but he shushed her.

"It's bad enough I have to cart you home, don't make it worse by complaining all the way."

"Excuse me?" she shrieked

"Just keep quiet, I have to listen. There might be more around here. Beowolves travel-"

"-in packs. I know, I'm not stupid."

He chuckled but didn't respond to her jab. The house came in view soon enough and he kicked open the front door. He laid her on the couch and Taiyang rushed in.

"I was about to leave to go try and find you. What happened?" he saw the blood.

"Weiss ran into a Beowolf without her weapon." Qrow filled him in. He left and returned with bandages while Taiyang worked off her boot as carefully as he could.

Qrow knelt down and began to wrap her foot. The gash was deep, but it was a clean cut.

"You're Aura is too weak to heal it right now, but you should be better in the morning. You just need some rest."

She nodded and winced as he set her foot down.

"I'm glad you're okay." Taiyang smiled. "Monty knows we have enough injuries in this home."

"I can take you to your bed." Qrow said and scooped her up without pausing for consent.

She huffed but bore it, and he set her gently on the bed. He handed her a nightgown from her drawer and left the room. She changed as best she could, dumping her remaining boot on the floor. She laid back and tried to push away the ebb of pain. Her ankle was throbbing and she felt her Aura straining to heal it. After what must have been hours she felt the wound seal up. It was tender to the touch but the skin was smooth again and there was no more bleeding. She walked around the room to test it and found it was only a little tender. She left the room to go get a drink of water from the kitchen but stopped on the stairs when she heard the two men talking. She hesitated, not wanting to interrupt them.

"Why was it so close to the house?"

"I'm sure it was attracted by all the negative emotion that's been going on lately. With Yang and Ruby, we've all been a little down. There was no sign of a pack."

"It's a good thing you went to search for her."

"I guess." Qrow shrugged

"She's exactly as Ruby described her." Taiyang chuckled. "A Schnee through and through."

"Maybe a little better than the other ones." She heard him screw off the lid to his trusty drink. "She's not as heartless. She has the attitude though."

"I'm glad Ruby made a friend like her. She pushes her to be better."

"She pushes herself to be better. You should have seen her today. She'll be giving that sister of hers a run for her money soon."

"And we all know how you feel about her."

"What do you mean?"

"The sexual tension with you and Winter is visible."

Qrow snorted loudly. "As if, I wouldn't touch that snowflake with a ten-foot pole."

"Alright, Qrow." Taiyang chuckled. "I'm going to go check on Yang before I go to bed, see if she needs anything."

"I'll do it. I want to talk to her anyway."

Weiss heard Taiyang leave and head for his own bedroom. She was just about to turn away when Qrow's voice stopped her.

"You can come out, you little snoop."

"I was coming to get a glass of water." She snapped, making her way down the rest of the stairs.

"And you just happened to stand there for a couple minutes."

"I didn't want to interrupt you." She crossed her arms and stared at him.

"Water is that way." He pointed to the kitchen.

She flipped her hair and walked away, pulling a cup out of the cabinet and filling it in the sink. The water gave some moisture back to her throat and she was grateful to be rid of the scratching a healing always left her.

"I see you're all better now."

"It fixed up a little while ago."

"You'll need to take it easy on it tomorrow. You should stay inside."

"I'll see what I feel like doing." She scowled and drained the rest of the glass.

He chuckled and took another swig, holding it out to her when he caught the look of displeasure on her face. "Want some?"

"No thank you." She turned up her nose as she put her dirty glass in the sink.

"Suit yourself." He drained the rest of it and she smelled it from where she stood.

"Are you ever not drunk?"

"Not if I can help it." He smiled, walking over to refill it from one of the bottles he kept in the cabinet.

She rolled her eyes and turned to leave. He followed her into the living room and sat on the couch while she slowly made her way up the stairs.

"Don't break a nail." He quipped as she made it to the top.

She huffed but didn't grace his comment with a response. The room was dark and she had to move even slower to make sure she didn't bump into anything.

The next day she stayed inside, under the pretense of needing to coordinate with the other Hunters. It wasn't a complete lie. A lot had happened in the past day. Nora and Ren said Jaune was wanting to go after Cinder and it was taking their combined efforts to keep him in place. Two more Hunters' bodies were found in the rubble of Beacon, but they weren't able to be brought home. Grimm were swarming the area like crazy. The dragon was still frozen, but the way things were looking they weren't expecting that to last long. A few teams of older students had combined forces to try and clear out some of the Grimm but most efforts were put towards defending Vale.

She told Taiyang and Qrow everything she had found out at dinner and they nodded their heads.

"Many of the older Hunters are moving into Vale to try and help. No one trusts the Atlesian soldiers anymore. People want real humans protecting them again. It's a bit of a setback." Qrow smiled.

"I'm sorry to hear about your friends. It must be hard for them to sit still after all this."

"We just don't know what to do. We don't have any school to go to, and everyone is scattered to the end of the world now. We're all just lost."

"Hopefully someone will come up with a plan soon. I've been thinking about offering to send Ruby and Yang to one of the other schools next year if they want to. They need to continue their education."

"Even us old timers are unsure of what to do. No one knows who to trust anymore. And Ozpin being gone isn't helping."

"Is he…dead?" Weiss asked.

The men exchanged looks. "We aren't sure. It doesn't feel like it, and we have some reason to believe he is still somewhere; but no one has heard or seen anything since the battle."

She nodded slowly. She finished her plate and put away her dishes, going into the living room to read. Qrow walked in and sat on the couch across from her. It was quiet for a while before he spoke up.

"I heard you singing yesterday."

She blushed but kept her chin high. "So?"

"You have a nice voice."

She raised an eyebrow. "What, no sarcastic comment?"

He raised his hands in surrender. "I can be an almost nice guy sometimes."

"When you have the right booze." She nodded at the flask on the couch next to him.

"What, this?" he opened it and turned it upside down. "It's empty."

She held her hand to her mouth in mock surprise. "Is this a new record?"

"It's only been a few minutes."

"So yes."

He smirked. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you. Without me you would have been doggie chow."

She blushed again and cast her eyes back to her book. "Thank you, by the way."

"Schnee's can actually be grateful for something?"

"Of course we can." She snapped her book shut. "If you hadn't been there I don't know what would have happened."

"Don't make me regret it." He met her eyes. "We can go train again tomorrow. I'll be leaving a little sooner than I thought. I'm going to try and wait on Ruby but I want to make sure you are ready when I do go."

"Do you know where you're going?"

"Of course I do, not that I'm going to tell nosy teenagers."

"I am making conversation."

He nodded with sarcasm. "Sure. I was wondering if you could do something for me."

"Yes?"

"When I leave, keep Ruby and Yang…I don't really know how to put this. Taiyang will keep them safe, but keep them sane. You being here will remind them of what happened but we need to stay focused."

"It'll be hard. We really have nothing to focus on."

"I can fix that." He gave her a sneaky smile and stood up. "I'm running into town tomorrow to get some things for the house. Do you want to come?"

"I suppose." She nodded and stood up. "Goodnight."

He grunted and she made her way up the stairs. Her ankle was feeling better and she was glad not have to do a balancing act just to get to the bathroom. She changed into her pajamas and laid on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Around midnight she heard rustling and looked over to see Ruby stirring. She jumped out of bed and flipped the light on. Ruby eyes were moving under the closed lids and she was making small grunting noises. She flew down the stairs on and banged on Taiyang's door, shouting at him to get up. He opened the door, still dressed, and Qrow woke up in a groggy state from the couch. They ran up to the room together and Ruby was still tossing and turning. She tried shaking her gently but Ruby was still out cold. After an hour of this they guessed she was dreaming. This was a good sign but it didn't fix their situation. Weiss finally said she would stay up with her and they set up a sort of rotation. Ruby tossed for hours, tangling the sheets around her feet multiple times and nearly falling off the bed twice. After a few hours Taiyang came up and told her to get some sleep. She laid down in her bed and passed out immediately, but her dreams were as unsettling as Ruby's probably were.

She was on top of the tower with Ruby. Everything was white, she felt the screech of the dragon Grimm hanging in the night air like a dying piano note. Ruby laid collapsed on the stone floor. She ran over to her and shook her viciously. She was mumbling incoherently and crying silver tears. Weiss herself started crying because she couldn't get Ruby to wake up but she knew she needed to. She looked around and saw a huge bird perched on one of the stone pillars. Its whiteness blended in with the light of the night and it was difficult to keep focused on it. It looked at her with its red eyes and cocked its head.

"Please, we have to help her." She asked it.

It gave a little jump before fluttering down next to the pair of girls. It looked at Ruby and gave a small caw before looking at Weiss and fluttering its wings a little. Then it attacked her.

It pecked her in the hands when she tried to shield her face. Then it went for her eyes. The pain was blinding and she felt blood on her fingers. She jerked awake with a scream to Qrow shaking her awake. He had to pry her fingers away from her face. But when she looked at her hands she saw only tears. She was panting heavily. She looked over at Ruby who seemed to have calmed down a little. She was still in her slumber for now. Weiss had to fight her body from shaking, Once he saw she was awake Qrow leaned back and sat on the end of her bed. She took a minute to get her bearings before she looked at him.

"I'm sorry. You can go to sleep now if you want."

"No need to apologize. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"You don't have to lie, no one but me can hear you." He pulled out his flask and offered it to her.

"No thank you." She scrunched up her nose and he smiled.

"That's more like it. Now tell me what it was about."

"I said I'm fine." She shot back, standing up to get a drink of water. When she returned back to the bedroom he hadn't moved.

"It's bad to keep things bottled up."

"Should I talk to the bottle, like you do?"

He held his hand to his heart in fake shock. "You wound me."

She didn't respond and instead checked on Ruby. She was still out cold. She gave her partner's hand a supportive squeeze.

"Go to sleep, Princess. You need it more than I do."

"I said I'm fine."

"No need to get snippy." He quipped. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something anyways."

"Yes?"

Before he could say anything, Ruby stirred a little. They both looked at her and her eyes fluttered open. Weiss gave a wide smile and yelled for Qrow to get Taiyang. She grabbed Ruby's hand as she woke up. She saw Weiss and immediately hugged her. They stayed locked in the embrace until the men walked back into the room.

"Dad!"

"Ruby!" he rushed over and took Weiss' spot, giving his daughter a hug.

"Uncle Qrow?" she looked over Taiyang's shoulder

"Hey squirt."

"Why is everyone here? Why is Weiss here? Where am I?" she started to look a little confused.

They exchanged glances. "Ruby, it's been a while. What exactly do you remember?"

She looked away in thought. "I remember the tournament. And Penny got hurt." She cast her eyes down and Weiss knew the memories were coming in clearer. "I remember the battle starting, and I watched Roman get eaten by a Griffin. When I came back I saw Yang and the dragon appeared. Weiss and I left to go fight it but it went to the top of the tower. Cinder was up there with Pyrrha and she…she…" Ruby stopped.

Weiss walked around the bed and took her free hand.

Qrow sounded almost reassuring. "It's alright, Ruby. You've been through a lot. Yes, the battle did happen. After everyone saw what happened at the Tournament, everything went crazy. Grimm swarmed the school, the White Fang infiltrated it too. Hunters were fighting everywhere. Vale was almost overrun. When the Dragon Grimm appeared you two left. What you saw was true, Pyrrha is gone."

Ruby closed her eyes tightly and Weiss rubbed her back.

"There are a lot of unanswered questions from that night, Ruby." Taiyang lifted her chin up. "But what's important is that you girls are safe."

"And Yang? Did she really…?"

"She is healing well, but she is hurt pretty bad." He squeezed her hand. "She will want to see you when you're ready."

"If you two wouldn't mine, I'd like to talk to my niece in private."

Weiss nodded and after giving her friend a quick hug she followed Taiyang out of the room, who left a lot more reluctantly. Weiss went into the living room and sat on the couch, planning to wait out the two Hunters. But she dozed off almost as soon as she sat down. She didn't wake up until the early afternoon, and she had to rush to get ready in time to go with Qrow into town.

It was very depressing. The people looked haggard and worn, and no one smiled anymore. She saw a few Hunters from Beacon but after a hurried hello they went about their business. Qrow led her though town as he made his stops. He ditched her when he wanted to go to a bar and she wandered the streets on her own.

After nearly an hour, and bringing a strong stench with him, Qrow found her and they got on the plane to head home. He just stared out the window and she did the same, thinking about Ruby. She wasn't sure how the happy girl would be taking the crushing news that had happened at the Battle. For that train of thought, she didn't even know how Yang was taking it. She resolved to talk to both girls before dinner.

They arrived at the house and unloaded their groceries. After everything was settled Weiss went in and checked on Ruby. She was on her Scroll, trying to catch up on the time she had been out. Weiss walked in to brush her hair after the plane ride and Ruby watched her.

"Where's Blake?"

Weiss thought about her response, not wanting to upset Ruby but also not wanting to sugar-coating it. "I don't know, Ruby. Off dealing with her own problems."

"Why did she leave us?"

"She had to fight a White Fang member, and they hurt Yang. I'm sure she feels guilty." She moved to sit on the end of Ruby's bed. "There might even be something going on that we don't know about."

"I don't blame her; I just wish she was here." Ruby looked in the mirror that was across her bed. "She'll come back though, I know she will."

"I'm sure she will Ruby. She just needs some time."

"I messaged Jaune. He said he wants to go after Cinder."

"We don't even know where she is, Ruby. And after what happened to Pyrrha, I really think we should think about it. It's dangerous."

"Everything's dangerous. But we can't just sit here."

"We won't Ruby. We need to train some more. I've been going out with your uncle sometimes, or by myself. We need to get better. Your Father said he could send you to another academy in the fall if you wanted."

"No! I want Blake back, and I want to take out Cinder." Ruby gave a very motivated look. "I can't sit at another school while she runs free out there. And besides, Uncle Qrow said something about going to Haven soon on something for Ozpin. I'm sure it has something to do with her."

"Ruby, we can't know that for sure. And you have no idea what you're running into."

"We'll figure it out on the way." Ruby leaned in closer. "Come on Weiss, it'll be fun."

"It's a suicide mission. Jaune is just acting out, Ruby. He's upset about Pyrrha and I understand but we need to take things slower."

"That's not what Uncle Qrow says."

"Qrow drinks alcohol like it's water, he isn't the best for life advice."

"Uncle Qrow is the best!"

"I'm not saying he isn't." Weiss rolled her eyes at the younger girl. "I told you he's been helping me with training. But we need to be cautious, now isn't a time for rash decisions. Yang needs you right now."

Ruby looked at the covers. "I don't know what to tell her."

"Just be there for her. You know I can't talk to her like you can."

"I just don't know what to say. It's all wrong. This isn't how things were supposed to go. We were supposed to win. We're the good guys."

"We did win, Ruby, just not the way we wanted. Not completely. The Grimm were stopped, we saved a lot of people. That wasn't nothing. We just need to stay focused and work on what we can."

"I'm tired Weiss, I think I'm going to take a nap."

"Okay, I'll let you sleep." Weiss patted her friends hand and stood up. "I'll come wake you up for dinner."

"Thanks Weiss." She smiled and pulled the covers over her.


	4. Refusal and Acceptance of the Call

**This one is a little shorter but I wanted to get one out quicker than last time. Hope you guys enjoy!**

Refusal and Acceptance of the Call

Weiss left the room and closed the door, going downstairs to read a little before dinner. She heard someone cooking in the kitchen and music playing from the back room. Qrow was passed out on the couch.

When dinner was ready she set the table, so Taiyang went upstairs to ask the other girls if they wanted to join. She heard a loud voice and Taiyang came running down the stairs. Qrow's head popped up while Taiyang bolted out the back door, calling for Ruby.

"Ruby?!" he called into the twilight. The sun had just begin to set.

"Where is she?" Weiss asked, running after him in her bare feet.

"I don't know. She left a note on her bed saying she was leaving. She's gone! I have to go find her!" Taiyang grabbed his coat from next to the door and began to pull it on.

"I wouldn't bother." Qrow's voice slithered through the air.

"And why not?"

"If she wanted to leave, she's gone. There's no catching Ruby if she's running."

"I can't just let her run off! Weiss, come with me."

Weiss looked between the two men for a moment. "She did say she talked to Jaune. Those two can never sit still."

"She's gone, Tai." Qrow put his hand on the other man's shoulder.

"I'm still going to go look for her. Maybe I can catch up, talk some sense into her."

"What sense? That she wants to go out and do something? That she doesn't want to play the victim and lay helpless in bed when she could be out fighting?"

"She can't be running around the country, Qrow! She's just a little girl!"

"She's a Huntress, and a good one at that. She can handle herself."

"I'm not going to let my daughter go out on her own to take down a dangerous criminal!"

"What are you going to do, chain her to the wall? She's a free spirit, Taiyang. If she wants to do something, she'll find a way."

Weiss bit her lip, carefully considering saying something. "If she's with Jaune, she'll be with Nora and Ren too. Those are Jaune's teammates."

"She's got a team. This isn't any different than her going on a mission for the school."

"She has no back up. What if she gets into trouble?"

"Me." Weiss murmured, thinking on it. "I'm her back up. She left me here to rally our team, Yang and Blake. When she needs us she'll call us."

"This is insanity. I'm going after her." Taiyang walked out the door and slammed it shut.

Qrow winced at the loud noise. "He's in denial, give him a few hours of rooting around out there and he'll come to his senses."

Weiss bit her lip but nodded, walking up to Ruby's room. The note was still laying on her bed and Weiss read it. The handwriting was neat and careful; Ruby had thought about this. She was a do-er. She hated to sit idly by while she could help. Weiss also knew Jaune would be out to fight for Pyrrha, to finish her work. She felt a little insulted that Ruby hadn't invited her, but she tried not to let it bug her. Having a Schnee with them could cause more problems than it would fix. She had a literal target on her back for the White Fang.

She made Ruby's bed and placed the note in the drawer, she really didn't want to look at it. Everything had been almost good for a while. This place had really started to feel like a home. Now she felt like a burden, like she had driven Ruby off. She sighed and glanced at Myrtenaster. He would have to wait for Ruby's call, too.

Qrow was snoring on the couch again as Weiss came down to put up the uneaten dinner. While she saw Qrow's logic, she still didn't like the fact Ruby had run off. She would miss her a lot.

A knock on the door sounded and the snoring man was up faster than a flash with his hand on his weapon. Weiss peeked around the corner and saw Qrow open the door. A haggard looking man who barely reached qrow's shoulder sat gasping on the doorstep.

"He told me-to tell you-its-time." He panted, trying to get the words out.

"Are you sure."

Even through his exhaustion the man gave him a look. "Yeah, pretty sure."

"Let me get my stuff together. Come in, you can rest here before going back. He's out right now, but he'll be back in a while."

The man nodded and walked in, collapsing on the couch. He looked like he had run all the way from Beacon. Weiss ran upstairs and grabbed her weapon, Scroll, and all her extra Dust pouches. Shoving them in her pouch, she pulled on her shoes while running down the stairs. She just caught Qrow on his way out.

"Let me go with you."

"No."

"So Ruby can leave, but I can't?"

"That is different."

"How?"

"She had a team."

"You constitute as a team, I'm sure." She huffed. "You can't stop me from going."

"Then why did you ask?"

She scowled at him.

He sighed and held up his finger. "The first time you get in my way, you're out."

She huffed but nodded. "Deal."

"Then come on, we have a long way to go. And who knows, maybe we'll run into Ruby and them."

"Maybe." Weiss muttered as she walked out into the night.


	5. Road of Trials part 1

**Just a heads up, finals are coming around and I might not have a lot of time to write but I will try my best. Good luck to all of you out there that are doing examinations or something!**

Road of Trials

They traveled off of the island, and hopped on a Dust plane to Mistral. Weiss was excited to travel again, but she tried to keep the gleeful shouting under control so she didn't look childish to Qrow. The other passengers were mostly Vale refuges or businessmen. She sat next to him the entire ride, trying to stay awake. She did doze off eventually, and Qrow had to shake her when they landed. They stepped into the cool air that refreshed their faces and he immediately headed off of the landing docks towards the city. He led the way downtown and up to a handsome brownstone apartment building. He knocked on the door and a woman answered.

She was very short, she was only an inch shy of being smaller than Weiss, but she hugged Qrow with all the force of a raging Ursa.

"You made it!"

"Sure did." He grunted, returning her hug.

"Come on in!" she ushered them in and closed the door, only noticing Weiss when she turned around to look at them in the light. "Who is this? She looks a little young for even you, Qrow."

Weiss huffed indignantly "I am-"

"One of my niece's friends. Weiss, meet Violet. Violet, this is Weiss. She's traveling with me to find Ruby, Taiyang's youngest daughter. Violet here is one of my old classmates."

"Not much good in battle anymore, I'm afraid, but I make do."

Weiss grit her teeth and plastered on her best fake smile, not forgetting the comment she might be Qrow's girlfriend. "It's nice to meet you. You have a lovely home."

"Thank you, dear. Come on, into the living room. I'm sure you two are hungry."

After serving them sandwiches and lemonade, with a little something extra for Qrow, she sat across from them. She had brunette hair with purple streaks that she kept back in a modest bun. She was in plain black pants and a purple top that hung off her shoulder. She looked like a cross between a Mom and a teenager, but the look worked for her. Despite the slight earlier, Weiss found herself not completely hating the girl.

"So how have things been here, Em?"

"Not bad, but certainly not great. Everyone is so paranoid of the military now. It's refreshing not to be assaulted by those robotic monstrosities around every corner, but crime is on the rise. Break-ins are more frequent and a lot of Dust stores are being robbed."

"Dust stores?" Weiss asked her, interest piqued.

"Just the other day the Dust shop just up the road was robbed. Didn't take any cash, just Dust."

"Have you been hit?" Qrow asked.

"No, most locals have the good sense not to mess with us Hunters."

"Well, we can't thank you enough, this should only be temporary. I intend to get the information I need and move on pretty quickly."

"It's not problem, stay as long as you need. It can get a little lonely with just me around here. Feel free to use the guest bedroom. Only one bed, unfortunately, but one of you can use the couch. Bathroom is down the hall if you need it."

"You're a life saver, Vi." Qrow gave a smoldering smile.

"Don't you flirt with me, you big tease." She blushed despite her words. "You both sleep good now. And Weiss, I hope you find your friend."

"Thank you." She gave a genuine smile this time as the woman walked upstairs.

"Dust store robberies are how it started in Vale." Weiss said, finishing off her sandwich. "Roman Torchwick and the White Fang nearly cleaned out Vale before they started the train run."

"I know, Ozpin mentioned something about it at one point in time. Can't imagine they'd try anything like that here, though. There aren't many trains around here."

"Maybe they're planning something else."

"And maybe it's just a bunch of kids trying to take advantage of a scared country." Qrow took a swig of his spiked drink. "We shouldn't think on it too much."

"Of course we should. It could mean they are here!"

"Who? Torchwick is dead, Ruby and three other witnesses saw him eaten alive. The White Fang are scattered right now after the attack on Vale, and we don't even know if Cinder is alive."

"But they all could be right here, plotting against Mistral."

"Yeah they could, and we will cross that bridge tomorrow. For now, we need to talk about something else. While I know you're proud of your family heritage, I don't think it best to walk around with their logo on your back."

"You want me to- to change?"

"At least take the symbol off or something. While your family has done great things, it also has done some less-than-admirable ones. I think it's in our best interests."

She bit her lip in thought. "I guess I could change."

"Vi runs an ammunitions shop downtown. If you go with her tomorrow, I can give her some money to get you something new while I go and figure out our next move."

"You're just wanting to send me to daycare while you go out and gather intel."

"I can't exactly have a little girl with me when I am questions street thugs, now can I? But you do need something else. I don't want your Father finding out where we are and come beating down my plan to drag you back."

"My Father doesn't care where I am." She cast a glance out the window.

"He would care if he thinks you've moved on." He noticed the look on her face. "Just in case, okay?"

"Alright." She sighed.

"You take the bed, I'll crash here."

She nodded and stood up. "Goodnight."

She walked into the guest room. It was comfortable but a little smaller than the room on Patch. She undressed and laid down, staring at the ceiling. She felt the whirring of the Dust plane in her ears still, thrumming like a Nevermore. She thought back to the night of the tournament and the huge avian Grimm circling them. It's sharp claws piercing the force field. She shivered as she imagined those sharp appendages wrapped around one of her friends, or an innocent pedestrian. Who knew what could have happened if it had been let loose in Vale.

It took longer than usual to get to sleep, so she woke up a little groggy the next morning. She went with Violet to her store and helped her set up for the day. They had a few Hunters come in to buy extra rounds or browse the weapons. Violet didn't talk to her much and no one really paid her any attention while she fiddled on her scroll. A little before lunch Violet said she could go for a while. She walked her down to an outfitters and helped her browse.

After almost an hour she settled on her decision. She selected a pair of white combat pants with heeled boots. A blue corset top laced up her back and gave her a more mature shape. She kept her usual side ponytail but gained a belt with more pouches for Dust and a holster for Myrtenaster. She felt powerful and mature, and she loved it. She pulled a long, white jacket that just brushed the ground, completing the look and giving her the familiar support around her shoulders.

Violet whistled as she walked out of the changing rooms. "You look lovely."

Not used to the praise, a light blush ran over Weiss' cheeks but she ignored it. "It feels odd to be in pants."

"You get used to it. I couldn't get how some girls wore combat skirts. I would be too afraid of flashing everybody."

"It offered me more movement. Should I change?" Weiss examined herself in the mirror.

"No, you look great. We can go pay and then you can load up your new belt with stuff from my store. I'll give you the special discount." Violet winked as she dumped the rejects on the return rack.

They paid for the goods and walked back to the store, and after addressing the small rush of customers they got at lunch hour, Weiss looked around for Dust rounds. She filled up on the usual and also added some emergency supplies. Two packets of rations and a survival kit went in the smallest pouch on her bag. It wouldn't do much unless it was a serious survival situation. Myrtenaster slipped nicely into the look on her left hip. Just before it got dark Violet closed the store and they walked back to the house.

Qrow walked in late, smelling of alcohol and victory. He nearly ran into the wall on his way in and grinned in triumph at Weiss. "Got some intel, we leave tomorrow."

"Are you drunk?"

"He's always drunk." Violet gave a sad smile and walked forward.

"That's not true." Qrow hiccupped as Violet took his arm and guided him to the guest room. "Sometimes I'm asleep."

Weiss shook her head. A few seconds later Violet walked out and shut the door. "He'll be fine in the morning."

"Do you know why he drinks so much?"

Violet sighed. "In school he was always down for a good time, you know? He was always happy, the life of his team. Him and Taiyang were very close. And we all had fun at parties and stuff, but he wasn't anywhere near this. A few years after we all graduated, Raven had disappeared." Violet walked over to the counter and placed her hands on it, facing away from Weiss. "When Summer died, it hit both of them hard. They'd already lost one teammate. Qrow took it really hard. He started drinking more and just never stopped. All hunters, all of us, have seen some awful things. Qrow probably the more than most.

"Taiyang had two girls to take care of with no Mother, so he settled down. Most people expected Qrow to follow suit, or at least teach or something. But he went out there alone. And he's been alone for a long time now."

Weiss took all this in quietly, thinking on how it must have felt.

"He's been solo on the front lines for years. He fights Grimm, people, anyone he thinks is out to get us. He's our savior but he destroys himself in the process." Violet sighed. "But enough of that. I'm headed to bed. I'll see you tomorrow. And don't worry, while he might not be the best at taking care of himself, I don't know a better Huntsman." She smiled at Weiss and headed upstairs.

Weiss walked into the living room and looked at Qrow's sleeping form. She walked towards his feet and slipped off his boots, covering him with a blanket from the back of the couch. He stirred slightly and she looked up to see his eyes open.

"Sorry, I just thought you might want to be a little more comfortable." She blushed and stepped away.

He regarded her for a moment and squinted a little. "You look like your sister." It slipped out of his mouth like he hadn't meant to say it, then he hauled up to one of his elbows to get a better look. "You still look like a Schnee."

"I can't help who my family is."

He shrugged. "Guess you can't. I'll wake you up tomorrow. Get some sleep, because it might be the last good night you get for a while."

Weiss nodded and headed to the guest room, both excited and nervous.


End file.
